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Insights and Opinions From Analysts and Experts in More Than 20 Industries

Thanksgiving Week Got a Bump, But Holiday Sales Are Still Out of Balance

Stores were certainly busier than last year, but from what I saw Thanksgiving
and Black Friday were a mixed bag this year. The early parts of both days were busy but ongoing store traffic wasn’t stellar, and it wasn’t consistent from store to store, or mall to mall.

The latest results from NPD’s partner, CivicScience, show that the peak holiday shopping week had more of an impact this year than the last two years. More shoppers had done a little holiday shopping (26 percent) by Thanksgiving week this year than in prior years (24 percent in 2015, 23 percent in 2016), and this was a noticeable jump from 21 percent the week prior – in 2015 and 2016, this number didn’t change at all over the same two week period.

While Thanksgiving week and Black Friday proved to be more important this year, it’s clear the holiday season is just getting warmed up. Through the week ending the Sunday after Thanksgiving, 52 percent of shoppers hadn’t started their holiday shopping yet, which is ahead of 2016 results for the same week, and in
line with 2015 results. As expected, Holiday 2017 is shaping up to be less like last year, and more like two years ago, meaning last minute procrastination will be less of a factor this year.

Despite the positive early momentum of this holiday season, 78 percent of shoppers still have most, if not all, of their holiday shopping ahead of them. This also aligns with what I saw and heard while roaming the stores and malls this weekend – much more of consumer purchasing was for themselves, and less than normal actual gift shopping over Black Friday weekend. A number of shoppers told me they hadn’t shopped since the summer. Consumers are actually saving up their purchases and waiting for these discount holidays.

Extensive promotions have created an imbalance in shopping throughout the year, but the good news is that consumers are engaged in shopping and spending. Let’s see what happens once consumers are done getting what they want and start to engage in true holiday spending.